Automatic ignition control



Jan. 22, 1929. 1,699,640

, w. r. VANVACTOR .wromwlc IGNITION common .Filed July 31. 1922 3 Sh ts-Sheefc 1 5mm. 22, 1929. I 1,699,640

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AUTOMATIC IGNITION CONTROL Filed July 31. 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 5 (5C9 as a9 m/ Z/ZZJ/ZZOI Patented Jan. 22, 1929.

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM T. VANVAGTOR, OF GARY, INDIANA.

A'U 'TOMATIC IGNITION CONTROL.

' Application filedfl'uly 31,

This invention relates to combustion engines and has for its principal object to automatically vary the time of ignition to effect the most advantageous operation of the en- 'ine. T A further object of the invention is to vary the time of ignition as the speed of the motor changes and in accord with a predetermined design that will give the most eflicient operation for particular fuel.

A further object of the invention is to provide an automatic spark controlling device that can be adjusted to suit difierent conditions.

A further object of the invention is to indicate the variations in the time of ignition so that the operator can readily see what advance or retard is given under particular conditions.

A further object of the invention is to pro vide comparative indicators showing the relation between the speed of the motor and the timing of the spark.

Further objects will become aparent as the description is read in connection withfthe accompanying drawings illustrating a selected embodiment of the invention, in which Fig. 1 isa vertical sectional View of a de vice embodying the invention;

7 Fig. 2 is a face view of the speed and spark indicators Fig. .3 is a transverse section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section on the line 55 of Fig. 1;

Figs. 6 and 7 are transverse sections on the line 6-6 and 77 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view illustrating a modification Fig. 9 is a plan view of the modifiedform 'ofcam that may be used to control the time of ignition.

Referring to Fig. 1, 10 indicates a shaft driven from the cam shaft or other source of power, and aligned with a timer shaft 11, carrying a breaker cam '12 and a rotor 13. Thebreaker cam and the rotor are parts of the well known form of timer, and it will not be necessary to describe them or any other parts of the timer particularly. The upper end of the driving shaft is equipped with a ball race 14 (Fig. 5) adapted to cooperate with a race 15 to receive the anti-friction balls 16 operating between the driving shaft 1922. Serial No. 578,555.

and the timer shaft. The two shafts are also provided with aligned openings 17 and 18 to receive a dowel 19. A helical spring 20 has one end 21 fixed to the timer shaft and the other end 22 adjustably connected to the driving shaft by being inserted in a selected opening 23 in thee'nd of the driving shaft. By putting the spring 20 on a sufficient tension it will tend to keep the timer shaft advanced relative to the driving shaft, thus neutralizing the friction of rotor and breaker cam and adding to the sensitiveness of operation.

The advance or retard of the timer shaft relative to the driving shaft is controlled by a Weight 24, Fig. 3, which is pivoted on a bolt 25 extending through the ends of a pair of cross arms 26 and 27 fixed to the driving shaft 10. The location of this pivot relative to the center of gravity of the weight may be selected to suit particular conditions and suitable means are provided between the weight and the timer shaft for giving that shaft such movement relative to the driven shaft as may be required by a particular motor or particular conditions under which the motor is operated. One way of accomplishing this is illustrated in the drawings in which the driving is effected through cams 28 and 29, Fig. 4, carried by the weight which operate a driving plate 30 having a rack segment 31 meshing with a pinion segment 32 fixed to the timer shaft. The driving plate 30 is guided in its movements by bolts 33 passing through slots in the plate and fastened to the cross arm 27 on the driving shaft. A similar plate 34 located above the driving plate 30 is operatively connected with the cam 28 and another plate 35 below the driving plate 30 is operatively connected with the cam 29. Preferably the connection between the cams and the cam plates is made by providing slots 36 and 37 in the cams to receive rollers 38 and 39 on suitable pins 40 and 41 fixed to the plates. The cam plates 34 and 35 are provided with slots 42 and 43 terminating in recesses 44 and 45 adapted to receive the teeth 46 and 47 of a pawl 48 pivotally carried by mounted on the center driving plate and imparts thereto a longitudinal motion from the upper plate 34 until the pawl action releases the driving contact between the center and upper plates and establishes a driving contact between thecenter and lower plate 35.

When the driving shaft is rotated in clockwise direction in Fig. 3, centrifu al force will tend to swing the heavy end of t e weight 24 outwardly which will .move the cam 28 outwardly and cause the walls of the slot 36 to move the roller 39 and drive the cam plate 34 to the right in Fig. 3. The pawl tooth 47 engaged in the recess 45 will make a driving connection between the cam plate 34 and the driving plate 30 until the tooth 46 reaches the recess 44. During this movement the rack 31 will drive the pinion 32 and thereby advance the timer shaft 11 relative to the driving shaft-10 or permit the spring 20 to of the tooth 46 in the recess 44, will drive the plate 30 to the left and effect a retarding movement of the timer'shaft relative to the driving shaft.

. The shapes of the cam slots 36 and 37, illustrated in Fig. 1, are suitable for certain conditions and certain engines but they can be varied to suit any particular conditions. A certain range of conditions can be provided for b making the cam plates 28 and 29 adjusta le. 1 accomplished this by pivoting the plate 28 to the weight at 52and providing a locking screw 53 operating in the slot 54 and by securing the plate 29 to the weight 24 by bolts 55 passing through slots 56. Under certain conditions it will be more desirable to use a cam slot somewhat similar to that shown at 56 in Fig. 9 in place of 36 to take care of the particular movement of the timer shaft required.

In some cases this slot will be so arranged as to take care of the required advance during low and intermediate speeds and also retard the spark when a certain high speed is reached. In some cases it may be desirable v to entirely dispense with the cam plate 29 and use only a single sliding plate or rack and cog engagement between the centrifugal weight and the timer shaft. This will produce a simpler construction wherever it can be satisfactorily used. I have illustrated the more comprehensive structure to show how a wider range of the control can be effected.

By' referring to Fig. 6 it will be seen that the movement of the weight 24 underthe action of centrifugal force is in opposition to a spring 57 having one end connected to the weight at 58 and the opposite end to a screw 59 threaded through a ratchet nut 60 supported between the arms 61 on the shaft 10.

66 (Fig. 2) supported on the side of the casing 67 or on the dash of the car so that the operator may quickly increase or diminish the advance normally given by the movement of the centrifugal weight. By moving the collar 63 up and down the pawl 68 can be made to successively. engage the teeth 69 of the nut 60 to rotate it in one direction, or the pawl 70 can be made to successively engage the teeth to rotate it in the oppositedirection.

The resistance of the spring 57, they relation between the center of gravity of the weight and its pivot and the shape and arrangement of the cams on the weight are all variables which can be taken advantage of to make the automatic change in the timing shaft correspond to any particular requirements. The spring 20 is used to relieve the shaft 10 of the friction in the moving parts carried by the shaft 11 and make the resistance to be overcome approximately the same in advancing and retarding the spark.

It is very important to be able to ascertain definitely and easily the exact relation between the timing shaft and the driving shaft 10. I accomplish this by providing an indicator driven directly from the timing shaft that will show the exact relation between the two shafts. The lower end of the timing shaft 11 has a cam 71 which operates upon a pin 72 carried by a rod 73, Fig. 1, which is ed on an enlargement 75 of the shaft 10. .This collar 74 may be integral with the rod 73 or otherwise fixed thereto and is formed in two parts, the outer part 74 being equipped with rack teeth 76 meshing with a pair of'pinions 77, Fig. 5, which are fixed on shafts 78 that carry gear segments 79 and 80. The parts of the collar 74 are connected by a suitable joint exemplified by the ball bearing joint 74", so that the inner portion of the collar may move in unison with-the rod 73, while the outer part 74' remains in mesh with the pinions 77 as shown in Fig. 7. The inner -sleeve of this ball bearing joint carries the connected with the collar 74 slidably mountspark, and, if correction is required, it can be intelligently and quickly made.

It is very convenient to have the speedof the motor indicated and it is particularly desirable to have means for comparing the relation betwen the speed of the motor and the changes in the time of the spark. Another needle as 85 (Fig. 2) can be moved to indicate the speed of the motor by operating it from. a second centrifugal wei ht 86 (Fig. 6) pivoted in the arms 26 and 27 at the ends opposite to the bolt 25that forms the pivot for the weight 24. The weight 86 is provided with an arm 87 having a cam slot 88 therein which operates upon a pin 89 carried by a rod 90 which is connected with a collar 91, Fig. 1, slidably mounted on a second enlargement 92 on theshaft 10, This collar has rack teeth 93 meshing with pinions 94 which drive shafts 95 carrying'segments 96 and 97 which cooperate with gears 98 and '99 to drive the tube 100 on which the needle 85 is fixed. The collar 91 has an outer part joint exemplified by the ball bearing joint 91" so that the two parts may have rotative movement in respect to each other. As shown in Fig. 2 the needle 85 moves over the dial graduated in figures to indicate revolutions per minute and the needle 84 moves over the same dial against the scale indicating degrees of angularity. The shaft 10 has three different diameters to provide for the operation of the collars 63, 91 and 74. The collar 63 is slidably mounted on the lower smaller diameter and is integral with, or rigidly attached to, the rod 62. The rod 62 passes through av keyway in the other diameters, or enlarged portions, of the shaft and under the collars 74 and 91. The collar 91 fitting on the enlarged portion 92 has rigidly attached thereto, or integrally connected therewith, a rod 90 which passes through a slot in the enlarged portion 75 of the shaft and under the collar 74, and also through the arms 26 and 27 to the pin 89 in the cam 88. The collar 74 is mounted on the enlarged portion 75 and carries the rod 7 3, integral therewith, or rigidly attached thereto, and fits over the rods 90 and 62. In the form illustrated in Figs.

1 and 7 this dial is on the casing 67 inclosing the governor mechanism, but it may be put on the dash 101 (Fig. 8) so as to be visible by the driver of the car at all times. In case of this arrangement the shaft 83 and tube 100 may be connected by suitable flexible shafts i with the needles 84 and 85 in the Well understood manner. It will also be very convenient to mount lever 66 on the-dash adjacent to the dial and connect it by asuitable flexible drive with the shaft so that the adjustment of the spring 57 to increase or decrease the eifect of the centrifugal weight can beaccomplished from the drivers position.

The weights 24 and 86 should be substantially the same so far as the relation between the center of gravity and the pivot is concerned. The weight 24 as will be understood from comparison with Figs. 3 and 6 has an arm carrying the cam plate 29 that is on the opposite side of the pivot from the bulk of the weight, but corresponding allowance can be made for this so that the weights will properly balance.

The weight 86 is equipped with a spring 102 which is adjustable through a bolt 103 and a nut 104 in substantially the same way as the spring 57 connected to the weight 24.

Adjustments of this spring, however, will not be very frequent and for that reason the nut 1.04 can .be rotated directly.

From the foregoing it will be clear that I have provided an automatic controller that will permit-the spark to be advanced in any desired manner. In some engines the best efiiciency will be obtained by advancing the spark in proportion'to the engine speed up to a certain point. and then advancing it 'more rapidly or less rapidly than the increase in speed. In other motors the best results will be obtained by advancing the spark steadily through low and intermediate speeds and then rapidly as the high speed increases. In still other motors it will be desired to both advance and retard thesparkperiodically or intermittently, as required. a My invention will take care of these conditions as well as the conditionwhere the advance is directly proportional to the engine speed at all times.

The presence of means to indicate both the advance of the spark and the speed of the motor is a great advantage to the operator ofthe car and to the repair man. Under certain conditions the two needles can be made to move together to indicate proper working conditions, whereas in others the needles will moveat different rates but they will always show exactly what advance is being given the spark at the corresponding speed, and if that is not the condition that produces the most efficient results, immediate steps canbe taken to correct thetiming. Another very important advantage of the invention is that it will permit the manufacturer to determine by'actual test what spark position for everyv speed and load will givethe highest etficiency. and then arrange the cams, the springs and the weightsv to give such advance automaticall engines, a driving shaft, a timer shaft, adriving connection between said shafts including a speed responsive device, and means operated by said speed responsive device to'first advance and then retard said timer shaft relative to said driving shaft as the speed of said driving shaft increases.

2. In an,ignition system for combustion engines, thecombination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft, a cam operated by said weight, a rack operated by said cam and a pinion driven by said rack and connected with said timer shaft.

3. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft, and means operated by the centrifugal movement of said weight to first advance the timer shaft relative to said driving shaft and then retard the timer shaft relative to said driving shaft.

4, In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight operated by said driving shaft, an adjustable cam operated by said'weight and means operated by said cam for advancing said timer shaft relative to said driving shaft.

5. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft,

'a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft, cams carried by said weight adapted to successively advance and retard said timer shaft relative to said driving shaft by the centrifugal force of said weight.

6. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combinatlon of a driving shaft, a timer shaft, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft, a plate operated by said weight, a second plate having a driving connection with said timer shaft, and means for connecting said first plate to said second plate for a limited movement. r

7. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft, a plate adapted to be moved by said weight, a second plate having a driving connection with said timer shaft, and means for effecting a driving engagement between said plates.

8. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven by said'driving shaft, a plate operated by said centrifugal weight, a second plate having a driving connection with saidtimer shaft, means for effecting a limited driving engagement between said first and second plate, a third plate operated by said centrifugal weight, and means for efiecting a driving engagement between said third plate and said second plate after the disengagement between said first and said second plate.

engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight, cams operated thereby, plates operatively connected'with said cams, a rack adapted to be alternately connected with said plates and a pinion driven by said rack and operatively connected to said timer shaft.

10. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft and means operated by said centrifugal weight to drive said plate to advance said timer shaft.

through a predetermined movement and a se 0nd cam operated by said weight adapted;

drive said plate to retard said timer shaft.

12. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrlfugal weight driven by said driving shaft, a plural- 9. In an ignition system for combustion ity of superposed plates, means for guiding the movement of said plates, one of sald plates.

having a driving en agement with said timer shaft, cams carried y said weight, each cam operatively connected with one of the other plates and means for alternately efieeting a driving engagement between the cam operateld plates and the plate for driving the timer s a t.

13. In anignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a centrifugal weight driven'by said driving. shaft, a, dfiving plate operatively connected with said timer shaft, a plurality of cam plates, cams carried by said weight, each cam operatively i connected with one of said cam plates and a latch carried b said driving plate adapted to alternately e eat a driving engagement between said driving plate and said cam plates.

14. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a'timer shaft driven thereby, means for automatically advancing the timer shaft relative to said driven shaft, and means for indicating the amount of such advance.

15. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, means for automatically varying the relation between said driving shaft and said timer shaft, and means for indicating the amount of the variation.

16. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a governor for controlling the time of ignition, and means for indicating the time of ignition.

17. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combinationof a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a governor for controlling the relation between said driving and timer shafts, and means driven by said timer shaft for indicating the relative position between said driving shaft and said timer shaft.

18. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, means operated by -said shafts for automatically indicating the relative position between said driving shaft and said timer shaft.

19. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a-timer shaft driven thereby, a cam operated by said timer shaft and means driven by said cam for indicating the relation between said driving shaft and said timer shaft.

20. In an ignition system for combustion engine's, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, means for automatically controlling the time of ignition, a cam carried by said timer shaft, a rack driven by said cam and a needle operated by said rack for indicating the time of ignition.

21. In a combustion motor, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft, a centrifugal weight driven by said driving shaft, means operated by the centrifugal weight for controlling the time of ignition, means for indicating the time of i 'tion, a second centrifugal weight driven y said driving shaft,

and means operated by said centrifugal weight for indicating the speed of the motor.

-, 22. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft,

a timer shaft, a driving connection between said shafts tending to-advance said timer shaft and a centrifugal governor'for controlling the advance of said timer shaft.

23. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft, a resilient driving connection between said shafts tending to advancesaid timer shaft, and a governor for controlling the advance of said timer shaft.

24. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the'combination .of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, a governor for controlling the relation between said driving shaft and said timer shaft, means for indicating such relation and means for adjusting said governor.

25. In an ignition system for combustion engines, the combination of a driving shaft,

shafts, and adjustable cams carried by saidweight operatively connected with said timer 27. In a combustion motor, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft, centrifugally operated means for controlling the time of ignition,and means controlled by said centrifugal means for indicating the time of ignition and the speed of the motor.

28. In a combustion motor, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft, centrifugally operated means for controlling the time of ignition and for indicatingthe speed of the motor, and means controlled by said centrifugal means for indicatirig the time of ign tion. v

29. In an internal combustion engine, the combination of a driving shaft, a timer shaft driven thereby, means for varying the relatween said driving and driven shafts, a

spring opposing the direct action of said weight under application of centrifugal force, and means for manually adjusting the tension of said spring relative to said weight.

WILLIAM T. VANVACTOR. 

